I never would have tried Red if it wasn't for the Blue login server going down back in February. I was terrified of PvP and had no intention of staying. However, the next day, after not being able to find an open cash camp on Blue at 8:00 AM on a Monday, I went back to Red and haven't looked back.
A lot of what people say on the forums about Red has some truth to it, but a lot of it is embellished. Yes, there are
some deleveled NToV-geared people who will PK you, but this is far from the norm. The vast majority of my experience has been extremely positive (
way more positive than Blue). Andain (Guild leader of Sanctuary) helped my friends and I with some started gear and spell money. Other people were very willing to help with ports, plat, and powerlevels. I play fairly casually, but I have been able to get both my Red cleric and druid both to 60 in four months due to the
insane exp bonus (which ranges between 150% solo to 390% with a full group).
When I hit 60, I joined the only raid guild on the server. They raid twice a week. No poop-socking mobs for hours on end. No batphones. It is literally more casual than the "casual" raid guilds on Blue. I got an
Iron Scroll of War of my second raid and a
Halo of the Enlightened on my fifth raid. Even without being able to do NToV, new players getting loot is a common occurrence.
The server population is low, not because of a "toxic" environment, but because of all the misconceptions that Blue players have about Red. My advice to new Red players is to bring friends, or join Sanctuary and make friends. The low population means that your reputation matters. Friendly people who are half-way decent at their class will develop good reputations that others will seek out.
I played on Blue consistently since 2015 (although I played on and off since 2011). I left behind my 60 enchanter (epiced, full raid gear), 60 druid (epiced), and 52 cleric (epiced, full raid gear). Since the day the Blue Login Server went down, I have only logged in once to help a friend with a CR. I have no intention of going back.
